Apparatus for prefabricating rectangular building units

ABSTRACT

APPARATUS FOR PREFABRICATING BUILDING UNITS AND INCLUDING A SUPPORT ON WHICH THE VARIOUS ELEMENTS OF THE BUILDING UNITS ARE PLACED AND GUIDE MEMBERS MOUNTED ON THE SUPPORT IN A POSITION TO RECEIVE AND MAINTAIN THE BUILDING ELEMENT IN PREDETERMINED LOCATIONS.

June 1, 1971 B. ZEINETZ 3,581,367

' APPARATUS FOR PREFABRICATING RECTANGULAR BUILDING UNITS Filed Dec. 5, 1968 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 By J K B. ZEINETZ 3,581,367

APPAIM'IUS FOR PREFABRICATING RECTANGULAR BUILDING UNITS June 1, 1971 5 Sheets-Sheet- 2 Filed Dec. 5, 1968 Fig.5

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K m WM m n m 3 3 7 2 M W, ATTORNEYS June 1, 1971 ZEINETZ 3,581,367

APPARATUS FOR PREFABRIGATING RECTANGULAR BUILDING UNITS Filed Dec. 5, 1968 5 Sheets-Sheets I June 1, 1971 .ZEINET 3,581,367

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APPARATUS FOR PRE ATING AR BUILDING UNITS Filed Dec. 5, 1968 5 Sheets-Sheet 4 a. ZEINETZ 3,581,367

APPARATUS FOR PREFABRICATING RECTANGULAR BUILDING UNITS 5 Sheets-Sheet'B June 1, 1971 Filed Dec. 5, 1968 United States Patent G1 hoe Patented .lune l, 1971 AIPARATUS FOR PREFABRICATING RECTANGULAR BUILDING UNITS Bertil Zeinetz, Stockholm, Sweden, assignor to Strom-Ljusne Aktiebolag, Ljusne, Sweden Filed Dec. 3, 1968, Ser. No. 780,814 Claims priority, application Sweden, Dec. 8, 1967,

Int. Cl. B23p 19/00; B2511 /00; BZSc 7/00 US. Cl. 29-200 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE Apparatus for prefabricating building units and including a support on which the various elements of the building units are placed and guide members mounted on the support in a position to receive and maintain the building elements in predetermined locations.

This invention relates to an apparatus for prefabrication of modular rectangular building units.

More particularly this invention relates to an apparatus for prefabrication of rectangularly shaped building units comprising sheet or cover board elements and filling elements such as insulating members, spacing fillets or reinforcing beams or the like members disposed between said sheet elements.

In recent years attempts have been made to reduce the building costs and the time required for erection of a building by employing building units having the form of whole walls or wall modules, floors and ceilings. Even if the building time could be shortened to some extent, the total building costs have not been lowered to an appreciable degree due to the fact that the prefabricated units must be worked on the building site because of the difiiculty of obtaining exact dimensions of the units manufactured at a more or less remote place.

One main object of the invention is to provide an apparatus for production in an industrial scale of building units with very strict tolerances and possessing perfect maintenance of dimensions thereby entirely avoiding the necessity of working or finishing the units on the site of erection of the building.

Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of the kind in consideration which permits manufacture of each desired type of unit without requiring any changes in the apparatus proper.

A further object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of the kind in consideration which permits continuous manufacture of a large quantity of modular rectangular building units of exactly the same shape and dimensions.

Further objects and advantages will become apparent from the following description, considered in connection with the accompanying drawings which form part of this specification and of which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic representation of an apparatus according to the invention.

FIG. 2 is a similar representation of another apparatus according to the invention.

FIG. 3 shows a third apparatus according to the invention.

FIG. 4 shows a fourth apparatus according to the invention.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view of a stop edge of the apparatus of the invention presented in more detail.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of one side of a wall unit manufactured by means of an apparatus according to the invention.

FIG. 7 is a sectional view of the same kind as in FIG. 6.

FIG. 8 is a perspective illustrating a wall unit constructed in accordance with the invention.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged fragmentary edge profile of the unit shown in FIG. 8.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged fragmentary section illustrating the joining together of the ends of two adjacent units.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged fragmentary section of a frame profile of the edge of a unit.

FIG. 12 is a perspective of an insulating element.

FIG. 13 is an enlarged sectional view following line XIIIXIII of FIG. 12.

FIG. 14 is a perspective of an electric conductor unit for the element shown in FIG. 12.

FIG. 15 is an enlarged fragmentary detail section of the apparatus according to the invention with adjusting members for floor or ceiling units.

FIG. 16 is an enlarged fragmentary sectional view of an edge of a floor unit.

FIG. 17 is a perspective of a floor unit manufactured in the apparatus according to the invention.

FIG. 18 is a perspective of a partially finished ceiling unit.

FIG. 19 is a perspective illustrating one side of an insu lating element for a unit.

FIG. 20 is an enlarged fragmentary section illustrating the joining together of a wall unit and a floor unit, in which both units have been manufactured in an apparatus according to the invention.

FIG. 21 is an enlarged fragmentary section illustrating a wall joint between units prefabricated and finished in a remote plant.

Referring to the drawings and in particular FIG. 1, the assembling apparatus shown diagrammatically in said fig ure consists essentially of a rcctangularly shaped box or case 1 having stop edges 2a and 3a. Said stop edges 2 and 3 are positioned on mutually opposite sides of the box 1 and extend in parallel with one another. The spacing between the stop edges defines the height of the wall units or the breadth of a floor or ceiling unit manufactured by means of the apparatus. Provided at predetermined intervals which preferably are equally great and which represnt a certain module are adjusting members 4 formed on at least the stop edge 2a. More suitably such members 4- are also provided at corresponding points on the stop edge 3a. These adjusting members which may be pins, grooves or the like as will be described more in detail below, are suitably interconnected in pairs by marking lines or grooves 5a extending transversally over the bottom of the box 1 to render easier the placing in position of the elements forming part of a unit in a manner to be described below in detail.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, the box 1 is arranged to be advanced through various conventional joining devices such as 6 and 6a which automatically interconnects the various elements constituting the building unit by means of nails or application of adhesive so as to obtain a form retaining unit having exact dimensions.

FIG. 2 shows another embodiment of the assembling apparatus according to the invention. In this embodiment the rectangular support surface includes an endless conveyor belt 9. Said conveyor belt 9 is guided over rollers 7 and 8 of which at least one is adapted to be driven to advance the assembled building units through the joining device. The belt 9 is composed of lamellae 10 made of steel or some other suitable material, which lamellae are hinged together. The lamellae have a length corresponding to the height of a building unit and a breadth corresponding the spacing between two adjusting members 4. At their ends the lamellae are provided with rectangular upwardly projecting stop plates 11 which on the upper plane track of the belt 9 bear against one another and in the embodiment shown form coherent stop edges 2b, 3b. The marking lines 5b are constituted by adjacent longitiudinal edges of the lamellae 10, the adjusting members being located in alignment therewith between the edges of the plates 11.

FIG. 3 shows a third embodiment of the assembling apparatus. In this embodiment the rectangular support surface includes flanges 12 and 13 of L-shaped bars having upwardly projecting flanges 14, 15 which constitute the pair of stop edges. The flanges 14, 15 are provided With adjusting members 4 of the same kind as in the embodiments described hereinto before. In this case the marking lines 5c are interrupted and extend only over the flanges 12 and 13, respectively.

FIG. 4 shows a fourth embodiment of the assembling apparatus which mainly is a modification of the apparatus shown in FIG. 2. The belt 9 of FIG. 2 has thus been divided into a pair of belts 9a and 9b of reduced breadth. The rectangular supporting surface will thus be of the same kind as that formed in the apparatus according to FIG. 3. The pair of belts 9a, 9b are driven at the same speed when an assembled building unit is to be advanced through the joining device 6 or 6'.

FIG. 5 shows a detail of one of the adjusting members 4. Such member has three different adjusting elements 4a, 4b, 40 which of course do not need be used simultaneously or be provided at the same time in each positioning point on a stop edge. FIG. 5 illustrates also a guide member 16 for guiding and retaining a filling member during assemblage of the building unit. As shown, the guide member 16 is a pin intended to be guided within an aperture or bore 17 formed in the inner wall of the stop edge and provided at its rear end with a plate 1 8 guided between two rails 19, 20. A spring member 21 retains normally the pointed free end of the pin inside the face 22 of the stop edge. 23 denotes the supporting surface of the apparatus on which the building units are assembled. The guide members 16 are located at predetermined distances along the stop edges to receive bores 24 in an edge beam 25. As shown in FIG. 8, the bores are laterally displaced in relation to the connection line 26 between two module units in a finished wall.

When assembling a modular building unit, which means a unit having a height corresponding to the spacing between the stop edges and a breadth corresponding to the distance between two or more of the adjusting members spaced from one another by the module distance (for example cm.), a sheet or lower cover board element 27 (FIGS. 6, 7) is to begin with applied onto the supporting surface 23 constituted, for example, by the bottom of the box 1 in FIG. 1 with two opposed edges bearing against the stop edges and thereby fixed in height relation. The adjustment in lateral direction is effected by causing a corner of the lower cover board 27 to abut against the pin 4c or some other suitable marking point on the stop edge. The lateral adjustment can also be effected by means of the marking lines 5a, 5b, 50 or 5d with one edge of the cover board being brought into alignment with one such line. One corner Will thereby be brought to exact abutment against the pin 4c which will prevent the cover board from becoming displaced laterally.

When manufacturing a unit of the type shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 an edge beam or fillet 25 is applied on each end of the unit so as to bear against the'stop edges. Thereby the positions of the beams or fillets in the height direction of the unit are fixed in this way in an exact manner. In order to obtain a defined lateral adjustment each beam or fillet 25 is formed with at least one bore 24 located at the same distance from one end of the beam as is the spacing between the adjusting member and the guide member 16. When the pin 16 by applying some outer force is pressed inwards into the bore 24 a firm anchoring of the fillet 25 will be obtained due to the pin having a crosssection fitting to the bore. Inserted between the two end beams 25 is an insulating element 28, for example constituted by a sheeting of glass fibers, as is illustrated in FIGS. 6 and 7. If the bore 24 is made penetrating through the entire fillet and the pin 16 has sufficient length, said pin will also penetrate into the insulating element and secure the position thereof. The insulating material will prevent the beams from an inwardly directed displacement.

After the securing of the beams 25 and the insulating members 28 an upper cover board 29 is applied so as to project over the beam 25 at the one end of the unit, for example, as is shown in FIG. 6. In this case the location of the cover board is determined by abutment against a pin 4a. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 7 the two cover boards 27 and 29 are of equal size and the board 29 is fixed with its edge in a groove 4b formed in the adjusting member 4. The dash and dotted lines 30 in FIGS. 6 and 7 denote some surface coating material which may be applied onto the cover boards.

Even if FIGS. 6 and 7 only show end beams or fillets 25 it is obvious that lateral beams or fillets may be applied, if desired. As an example for such lateral beams the door frame 31 shown in FIG. 8 may be mentioned. The entire wall unit shown in FIG. 8 has been manufactured in the apparatus by assembling a modular unit in the manner described above, whereupon the entire wall unit in exactly fixed position has been advanced through the joining device 6. In the edge beam 25 both the guide bores 24 and holes 82 for electric conductor tubes, for example, are visible.

FIG. 9 shows an edge beam 33 which renders easier exact joining together of part blocks in the wall unit following the joint line 26 shown in FIG. 8, for example.

FIG. 10 illustrates how cover boards can be joined together by means of a joint fillets means comprising a pair of narrow joining fillets 34 with insulating material 35 inserted therebetween. Such joint filling means affords good sound-absorbing and heat-insulating properties.

FIG. 1.1. shows in more detail a portion of the door frame 31 shown in FIG. 8.

FIG. 12 shows a spacing and insulating block in which recesses or notches 36 have been formed in the mentioned module scale for electric terminal boxes and conductor tubes of the type shown in FIG. 14. The recess 37 for the tube 3 8 is located at a predetermined spacing from the guide bore 24. FIG. 13 shows a detail of a section through the insulating element 28 from which it becomes evident that the groove for the tube 38 has been covered with a fillet 39.

FIG. 15 shows a modification of the stop edge 2 for assemblage of floor and ceiling units. In this embodiment the guide pins 1 6' are displaceable transversely to the supporting surface 23 and adapted to penetrate into floor joists.

FIG. 16 shows an edge section of a floor unit which has been assembled in the apparatus. The unit consists firstly of a pair of cover boards 27, 29 and secondly includes an edge beam 40 having guide bores 24 adapted to collaborate with the vertical pins 16.

FIG. 17 shows in a diagrammatic manner a mounted floor unit in upside down position. Said floor unit consists of firstly, lower cover boards 27 which have been joined together over the supporting joists 41 and secondly, edge beams such as the edge beam 40 of FIG. 16, for example. The guide bores 24 formed in the edge beams are visible. At predetermined places holes 42 for Water supply tubes and electric conductors have been provided. When all material forming part of the floor unit has been assembled, the block is fed into the device 6 to become joined together by nails or adhesive.

FIG. 18 shows a ceiling block with a cover board and edge beam 25, into which joists 43 have been inserted so as to be in flush with the external face of said beams. The guide bores 24 are visible in the edge beams.

vFIG. 19 shows the bottom side of an insulating or spacing element for the ceiling unit presented in FIG. 18. The element is provided with channels 44 extending in directions crossing one another and intended for insertion of electric conductors. The channel pattern renders it possible to draw tubes or conductors to practically each desired place in the overhead surface without any working of the element becoming necessary.

FIG. 20 illustrates how a wall unit for example of the type shown in FIG. 6 can be joined together with a floor unit of the type shown in FIG. 17. As will be seen from FIG. 20, guide pins 45 are initially aligned with the bores 24 formed in the edge beams of the floor unit, whereupon the wall unit is advanced on the floor unit so as to cause the guide pins 45 to enter the bores 24 in the beams 25. The joint is most suitably locked by cementing the pins 45 within the bores 24 by means of an adhesive.

FIG. 21 shows a wall joint between several units manufactured at a remote plant. Such joint is made on the building site. The wall units 46 and 47 belong to diiTerent sections. Inserted on the building site is a guiding and tightening device 48 consisting of two fillets having conical cross-section encasing an intermediate layer of suitably resilient insulating material. The edge beams of the units have the profile shown in FIG. 9. The sections 46 and 47 are drawn together by means of a bolt 50 extending from end to end thus through the whole unit. After the drawing together of the sections of the type shown, a covering fillet 51 is applied on each side by means of screws whereby a perfect sealing is obtained.

As will be understood from the above description one is capable of manufacturing by means of an apparatus according to the invention any desired type of building unit without any changes of the mounting box becoming necessary. The apparatus of the invention renders possible to manufacture exactly dimensioned units with cover boards of plywood for example so that expensive finishing working on the building site is avoided. The exact dimensions also result in that the fitting becomes so good that the wall elements can be given the final finish which means he painted or surface-treated in some other way, the fit between water supply tubes or the like provided in one wall element and a corresponding tube in a floor or ceiling block always being so exact that direct interconnection of the tube ends is possible.

While several more or less specific embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, it is to be understood that this is for purpose of illustration only and that the invention is not to be limited thereby, but its scope is to be determined by the appended claims.

What I claim is:

1. Apparatus for prefabricating generally rectangular building units comprising support means having at least two substantially parallel sides, stop members located along said parallel sides and having portions disposed out of the plane of said support means, an adjusting member carried by at least certain of said portions of the stop members, said adjusting member including guide pin means selectively movable to a position between said portions of said stop members and adapted to engage a workpiece to hold the same in fixed position.

2. The structure of claim 1 in which said support means includes marking lines extending generally normal to said parallel sides.

3. The structure of claim 1 in which said stop members include a pair of rails rigidly connected to said support means.

4. The structure of claim 3 in which each rail is subdivided into a plurality of parts.

5. The structure of claim 1 in which said support means includes an uninterrupted support plate.

6. The structure of claim 1 in which said support means includes an upper substantially horizontal run of a belt conveyor.

7. The structure of claim 6 in which said belt conveyor includes an endless conveyor belt having interconnected generally parallel lamellae.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,085,579 6/1937 Florcyk 227l52X 2,754,862 7/1956 Kemp, Jr. 144-288 3,086,210 4/1963 Good et a1 227l52X 3,371,921 3/1968 Hollomon et a1. 269--25 3,399,445 9/ 1968 Caroll 29-200 3,431,619 3/ 1969 Bowers, .lr. 29--200 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,421,116 11/1965 France.

842,711 6/ 1952 Germany.

247,635 3/ 1947 Switzerland.

HARRISON L. HINSON, Primary Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 144-288; 227152 

